Antenna, antenna array and communication device

Abstract

The invention provides an antenna, an antenna array and communication equipment. The antenna comprises a first dielectric substrate, a second dielectric substrate and a third dielectric substrate which are stacked in sequence, the third dielectric substrate is provided with a first surface and a second surface, and the second surface is closer to the second dielectric substrate; the first radiation electrode and the second radiation electrode are respectively arranged on the first surface side and the second surface side; the frequencies of electromagnetic waves radiated by the first radiation electrode and the second radiation electrode are different; the feed structure is arranged on one side, deviating from the third dielectric substrate, of the second dielectric substrate; the feed structure is electrically connected with the second radiation electrode; the second radiation electrode is provided with a slit opening penetrating in the thickness direction of the second radiation electrode, and the feed structure is electrically connected with the first radiation electrode through the slit opening; the reference electrode is arranged on one side, deviating from the second dielectric substrate, of the first dielectric substrate; any one of the first radiation electrode, the second radiation electrode and the feed structure is overlapped with the orthographic projection of the reference electrode on the first dielectric substrate.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure belongs to the field of communication technologies, and particularly relates to an antenna, an antenna array, and a communication device. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid development of wireless communication technologies, as the core physical carrier for wireless signal transceiver and spatial coverage, the performance of base station antennas directly affects network capacity, signal transmission speed, and user experience. Modern communication systems require base stations to support multi-band signals simultaneously, driving the improvement of base station antennas in the direction of multi-frequency and multi-polarization. However, the broadband design of base station antennas significantly increases the structural complexity of the antennas. Therefore, the compact design of the antenna system has become a key technical bottleneck restricting the energy efficiency and flexibility of communication devices.

[0003] Currently, mainstream dual-band and dual-polarized base station antennas usually adopt a co-reflector integrated design, that is, dual-polarized oscillators for high-frequency bands (such as 3.5 GHz) and dual-polarized oscillators for low-frequency bands (such as 1.8 GHz) are installed side by side on the same side of a metal reflector. The oscillators in each band are composed of two pairs of orthogonal dipole oscillators. For example, the dual-polarization characteristic is achieved through ±45° cross-feeding, enabling the antenna to support the independent transmission of two polarization waves simultaneously. Such antennas can achieve independent beamforming for two bands within a single physical aperture by sharing the reflector and the feeding network, meeting the multi-band working requirements of communication devices. However, due to the side-by-side or staggered arrangement of high- and low-frequency oscillators, the lateral size of such antennas is too large. The excessive physical size restricts the space installation utilization rate of communication devices in urban dense scenarios on the one hand, and may cause deviations in the multi-band beam directions on the other hand. Therefore, there is an urgent need to propose a miniaturized base station antenna to meet the requirements of the rapidly developing communication industry for communication devices. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present invention aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. On the one hand, an antenna is provided, which is characterized in that it includes a first dielectric substrate, a second dielectric substrate, and a third dielectric substrate stacked in sequence; the third dielectric substrate has a first surface and a second surface, and the second surface is closer to the second dielectric substrate; the antenna further includes: a first radiation electrode and a second radiation electrode, which are respectively arranged on the first surface side and the second surface side; the frequencies of the electromagnetic waves radiated by the first radiation electrode and the second radiation electrode are different; a feeding structure, which is arranged on the side of the second dielectric substrate facing away from the third dielectric substrate; the feeding structure is electrically connected to the second radiation electrode; the second radiation electrode has a slit opening penetrating along its thickness direction, and the feeding structure is electrically connected to the first radiation electrode through the slit opening; a reference electrode, which is arranged on the side of the first dielectric substrate facing away from the second dielectric substrate; any one of the first radiation electrode, the second radiation electrode, and the feeding structure overlaps with the reference electrode in the orthographic projection on the first dielectric substrate.

[0005] In some alternative embodiments, the feeding structure includes a first feeder and a second feeder, and the feeding directions of the first feeder and the second feeder are different; the slit opening includes a first slit opening and a second slit opening; the first feeder is coupled to the second radiation electrode and is coupled to the first radiation electrode through the first slit opening; the second feeder is coupled to the second radiation electrode and is coupled to the first radiation electrode through the second slit opening.

[0006] In some alternative embodiments, the extending directions of the first slit opening and the second slit opening are orthogonal.

[0007] In some alternative embodiments, both the first slit opening and the second slit opening include a first sub-opening, a second sub-opening, and a third sub-opening; for the first slit opening, its first sub-opening extends along a first direction, the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening extend along a second direction, and the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening are respectively connected to both ends of the first sub-opening; for the second slit opening, its first sub-opening extends along a third direction, the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening extend along a fourth direction, and the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening are respectively connected to both ends of the first sub-opening; the first direction and the third direction are orthogonal.

[0008] In some alternative embodiments, the first feeder line includes a first sub-feeder line and a second sub-feeder line, and the second feeder line includes a third sub-feeder line and a fourth sub-feeder line; the orthographic projections of both the first sub-feeder line and the second sub-feeder line on the first dielectric substrate overlap with the orthographic projection of the first slit opening on the first dielectric substrate; the orthographic projections of both the third sub-feeder line and the fourth sub-feeder line on the first dielectric substrate overlap with the orthographic projection of the second slit opening on the first dielectric substrate.

[0009] In some alternative embodiments, the first radiating electrode has a first hollowed-out portion that penetrates along its thickness direction.

[0010] In some alternative embodiments, the first hollowed-out portion includes a plurality of sub-hollowed-out portions arranged in a clockwise manner; any two of the plurality of sub-hollowed-out portions are rotationally symmetric.

[0011] In some alternative embodiments, a director structure is further provided on a side of the first radiating electrode facing away from the first dielectric substrate; there is an overlap among the orthographic projections of the director structure, the first radiating electrode, and the second radiating electrode on the first dielectric substrate.

[0012] In some alternative embodiments, the director structure includes a main body portion and four branch portions connected to the main body portion; any one of the branch portions is rotationally symmetric about the center of the main body portion with respect to the other three branch portions.

[0013] In some alternative embodiments, the materials of the second dielectric substrate and the third dielectric substrate include polycarbonate.

[0014] In some alternative embodiments, any one of the first radiating electrode, the second radiating electrode, the feeding structure, and the reference electrode is made of a conductive grid.

[0015] In a second aspect, the present invention provides an antenna array, including a carrier substrate and a plurality of antennas as described in any one of the embodiments of the first aspect; the plurality of antennas are arranged on the carrier substrate.

[0016] In a third aspect, the present invention provides a communication device, which includes the antenna array described in the second aspect. Description of the Drawings

[0017] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a base station antenna in the related art.

[0018] Figure 2 It is a schematic structural diagram of nested high and low frequency oscillators in the related art.

[0019] Figure 3Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the antenna provided by the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 4 is Figure 3 Exploded view of the structure of the antenna shown.

[0021] Figure 5 is Figure 3 Cross-sectional view of the antenna shown.

[0022] Figure 6 is Figure 3 Top perspective view of the antenna shown.

[0023] Figure 7 Schematic diagram of a two-point feeding structure.

[0024] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of another slit opening.

[0025] Figure 9 Schematic diagram of a four-point feeding structure.

[0026] Figure 10 Cross-polarization isolation curve of the antenna when using a two-point feeding structure.

[0027] Figure 11 Cross-polarization isolation curve of the antenna when using a four-point feeding structure.

[0028] Figure 12 An example of the shape of the first hollowed-out part.

[0029] Figure 13 Another example of the shape of the first hollowed-out part.

[0030] Figure 14 Another example of the shape of the first hollowed-out part.

[0031] Figure 15 The first example of the director structure.

[0032] Figure 16 The second example of the director structure.

[0033] Figure 17 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of another antenna provided by the present disclosure.

[0034] Figure 18 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of yet another antenna provided by the present disclosure.

[0035] Figure 19 is Figure 3 Simulation curve of the reflection coefficient S11 of the antenna shown.

[0036] Figure 20 is Figure 3Simulation results of the radiation pattern of the antenna shown

[0037] Among them, the reference signs are as follows:

[0038] 1. Reflector; 2. Side plate; 3. First oscillator; 4. Second oscillator; 5. Sleeve; 6. Support; 7. Mounting plate; 100. First dielectric substrate; 200. Second dielectric substrate; 300. Third dielectric substrate; 50. Second radiation electrode; 40. Feeding structure; 60. First radiation electrode; 80. Reference electrode; 41. First feeder; 42. Second feeder; 90. Slit opening; 91. First slit opening; 92. Second slit opening; 911 / 921. First sub-opening; 912 / 922. Second sub-opening; 913 / 923. Third sub-opening; 411. First sub-feeder; 412. Second sub-feeder; 421. Third sub-feeder; 422. Fourth sub-feeder; 62. First hollow part; 621. First sub-hollow part; 622. Second sub-hollow part; 623. Third sub-hollow part; 624. Fourth sub-hollow part; 622a. First opening; 622b. Second opening; 622c. Third opening; 70. Director structure; 71. Main body part; 721. First branch; 722. Second branch; 723. Third branch; 724. Fourth branch. Detailed implementation manners

[0039] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions of the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementation manners.

[0040] Unless otherwise defined, the technical terms or scientific terms used in this disclosure shall have the ordinary meanings understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. The "first", "second" and similar terms used in this disclosure do not indicate any order, quantity or importance, but are only used to distinguish different components. Similarly, the terms such as "a", "an" or "the" do not indicate a quantity limitation, but indicate that there is at least one. The terms such as "comprising" or "including" mean that the elements or objects appearing before this word cover the elements or objects listed after this word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. The terms such as "connected" or "coupled" are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. The terms such as "upper", "lower", "left" and "right" are only used to represent relative positional relationships, and when the absolute position of the object being described changes, the relative positional relationship may also change accordingly.

[0041] As used herein, "parallel" and "perpendicular" include the described situations and situations similar to the described situations, where the range of the similar situations is within an acceptable deviation range, and the acceptable deviation range is determined by a person of ordinary skill in the art considering the measurements being discussed and the errors associated with the measurements of specific quantities (i.e., the limitations of the measurement system). For example, "parallel" includes absolute parallelism and approximate parallelism, and the acceptable deviation range for approximate parallelism can be, for example, a deviation within 5°; "perpendicular" includes absolute perpendicularity and approximate perpendicularity, and the acceptable deviation range for approximate perpendicularity can also be, for example, a deviation within 5°.

[0042] It should be understood that when a layer or element is referred to as being on another layer or substrate, it can be that the layer or element is directly on the other layer or substrate, or there can be an intermediate layer between the layer or element and the other layer or substrate.

[0043] In this document, "electrically connected" includes the case where components are connected together through an element having a certain electrical effect. The "element having a certain electrical effect" is not particularly limited as long as it can transfer electrical signals between the components to be connected. Examples of the "element having a certain electrical effect" include not only electrodes and wirings, but also switching elements such as transistors, resistors, inductors, capacitors, and other elements having various functions.

[0044] Exemplary embodiments are described herein with reference to cross-sectional views and / or plan views that are idealized exemplary drawings. In the drawings, the thickness of layers and regions is exaggerated for clarity. Thus, variations in the shape relative to the drawings due to, for example, manufacturing techniques and / or tolerances can be envisioned. Therefore, the exemplary embodiments should not be construed as being limited to the shapes of the regions shown herein, but rather include shape deviations caused by, for example, manufacturing. Thus, the regions shown in the drawings are schematic in nature, and their shapes are not intended to show the actual shape of the regions of the device and are not intended to limit the scope of the exemplary embodiments.

[0045] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a base station antenna in the related art. As Figure 1As shown in the figure, this type of base station antenna includes a reflector 1, side plates 2 located on both sides of the reflector 1 and connected to the reflector 1, and a plurality of radiation units arranged on the reflector 1. Each radiation unit is located between the two side plates 2. In order to enable the base station antenna to support signal transmission in multiple frequency bands simultaneously and improve signal reliability and stability, a common radiation unit usually includes a first oscillator 3 and a second oscillator 4. Among them, the operating frequency of the first oscillator 3 is lower than that of the second oscillator. For example, the operating frequency of the first oscillator 3 is 1.8 GHz, and the operating frequency of the second oscillator 4 is 3.5 GHz. Therefore, in this article, the first oscillator 3 is also referred to as the low-frequency oscillator 3, and the second oscillator 4 is referred to as the high-frequency oscillator 4. At the same time, both the first oscillator 3 and the second oscillator 4 are dual-polarized antennas, so that the antenna can enhance coverage and capacity and can enhance signal stability.

[0046] Those skilled in the art can understand that Figure 1 the numbers of the low-frequency oscillator and the high-frequency oscillator shown in the figure are only illustrative. In actual base station antennas, a low-frequency oscillator array and a high-frequency oscillator array are usually adopted. That is to say, the high-frequency oscillators arranged in an array and the low-frequency oscillators arranged in an array are both installed on the same side of the reflector 1. This will result in a relatively large overall size and heaviness of the base station antenna, making it difficult to be applied in high-density urban communication scenarios.

[0047] In order to make Figure 1 the base station antenna shown in the figure miniaturized, a scheme of nested design of high- and low-frequency oscillators has been proposed in the related art. Figure 2 Figure [X] is a schematic structural diagram of the nested high- and low-frequency oscillators. As Figure 2 shown in the figure, this type of base station antenna still includes a reflector 1, side plates 2, a support member 6, a low-frequency oscillator 3, a high-frequency oscillator 4, and a mounting plate 7. Among them, the two side plates 2 are respectively located on both sides of the reflector 1 and connected to the reflector 1; the support member 6 is installed on the reflector 1; the low-frequency oscillator 3 is arranged on the side of the support member 6 away from the reflector 1. This low-frequency oscillator 3 is in a bowl shape, and a mounting plate 7 is arranged inside the bowl shape; a sleeve 5 is arranged on the mounting plate 7, and the sleeve 5 has a mounting chamber for installing the high-frequency oscillator 4. The high-frequency oscillator 4 is nested inside the bowl-shaped low-frequency oscillator 3 through the sleeve 5 and the mounting plate 7.

[0048] By nesting high-frequency and low-frequency oscillators together, it is indeed possible to effectively reduce the size of base station antennas. However, the following technical problems still exist: 1. During actual manufacturing, in order to improve the installation stability of high-frequency and low-frequency oscillators, it is necessary to additionally add multiple components for support, clamping, or limiting, resulting in a very complex structure for this nested high-frequency and low-frequency oscillator. 2. Since the high-frequency and low-frequency oscillators are too close, the isolation between them deteriorates sharply, seriously affecting the radiation performance of the antenna. 3. The design of high-frequency and low-frequency nesting often introduces a relatively high passive intermodulation (PIM) value to the base station antenna due to the welding process. The specific reason is that the nested high-frequency and low-frequency oscillators need to connect some structures of the high-frequency and low-frequency oscillators through welding, and the welding points are prone to form non-linear contacts due to differences in the thermal expansion coefficients of materials or process defects, resulting in uneven current distribution. Especially when multi-frequency signals are superimposed, the tiny non-linear effects at the welding interface will significantly amplify the third-order intermodulation products, causing the PIM value to exceed the industry threshold and limiting the performance of the base station antenna.

[0049] To solve at least one of the technical problems in the related art, the present disclosure provides an antenna, an antenna array, and a communication device. Next, the antenna, antenna array, and communication device provided by the present disclosure will be introduced in turn with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0050] Figure 3 is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the antenna provided by the present disclosure; Figure 4 is Figure 3 an exploded view of the antenna shown; Figure 5 is Figure 3 a cross-sectional view of the antenna shown; Figure 6 is Figure 3 a top perspective view of the antenna shown.

[0051] Refer to Figures 3 - 6, the antenna provided by the present disclosure includes a first dielectric substrate 100, a second dielectric substrate 200, and a third dielectric substrate 300 stacked in sequence. Among them, the third dielectric substrate 300 has a first surface S1 and a second surface S2, and the second surface S2 is closer to the second dielectric substrate 200. The antenna provided by the present disclosure further includes: a first radiation electrode 60, a second radiation electrode 50, a feeding structure 40, and a reference electrode 80. Among them, the first radiation electrode 60 and the second radiation electrode 50 are respectively arranged on the side of the first surface S1 and the side of the second surface S2, and the frequencies of the electromagnetic waves radiated by the first radiation electrode 60 and the second radiation electrode 50 are different. Exemplarily, the operating frequencies of both the first radiation electrode 60 and the second radiation electrode 50 are in the Sub-6G frequency band (for example, 1 GHz - 6 GHz), and the operating frequency of the first radiation electrode 60 is lower than that of the second radiation electrode 50. The feeding structure 40 is arranged on the side of the second dielectric substrate 200 away from the third dielectric substrate 300, and the feeding structure 40 is electrically connected to the second radiation electrode 50. In particular, the second radiation electrode 50 has a slit opening penetrating along its thickness direction, and the feeding structure 40 can be electrically connected to the first radiation electrode 60 through the slit opening on the second radiation electrode 50. The reference electrode 80 is arranged on the side of the first dielectric substrate 100 away from the second dielectric substrate 200, and any one of the first radiation electrode 60, the second radiation electrode 50, and the feeding structure 40 overlaps with the positive projection of the reference electrode 80 on the first dielectric substrate 100.

[0052] The above-mentioned first radiation electrode can also be referred to as a low-frequency radiation unit, and the second radiation electrode can be referred to as a high-frequency radiation unit. For the antenna provided by the present disclosure, by arranging the low-frequency radiation unit and the high-frequency radiation unit on two surface sides of the third dielectric substrate 300 respectively, and at the same time arranging the feeding structure 40 on the side of the second dielectric substrate 200 away from the third dielectric substrate 300, and the feeding structure 40 is electrically connected to the low-frequency radiation unit through the slit opening of the high-frequency radiation unit, at least the following beneficial effects can be achieved: 1. The antenna provided by the present disclosure adopts a multi-layer stacked structure, which can achieve zero soldering of the high-frequency and low-frequency radiation units. The solderless structure can greatly improve the PIM value of the antenna, thereby improving the signal quality and communication reliability. 2. The antenna provided by the present disclosure can flexibly combine radiation units of different frequency bands according to actual needs, thereby broadening the bandwidth and application scenarios of the antenna.

[0053] Next, the feeding structure and feeding method of the antenna provided by the present disclosure will be specifically introduced.

[0054] Figure 7 is an exemplary structure of the feeding structure. As Figure 7As shown, the feeding structure 40 includes a first feeder 41 and a second feeder 42, and the feeding directions of the first feeder 41 and the second feeder 42 are different. Correspondingly, the slot opening 90 includes a first slot opening 91 and a second slot opening 92. The first feeder 41 is coupled to the second radiating electrode 50 and is coupled to the first radiating electrode 60 through the first slot opening 91; similarly, the second feeder 42 is coupled to the second radiating electrode 50 and is coupled to the first radiating electrode 60 through the second slot opening 92.

[0055] In other words, for the antenna provided by the present disclosure, there is no need to connect the feeding structure 40 and the high and low frequency radiating units through welding or the like. Specifically, the feeding structure 40 can feed power to the high frequency radiating unit through the near-field coupling method, and feed power to the low frequency radiating unit through the aperture coupling method by means of the slot opening 90 opened on the high frequency radiating unit. In this way, the problem of low antenna transmission efficiency caused by the increase of the antenna PIM value due to the welding point can be avoided. It should be noted that the different feeding directions of the first feeder 91 or the second feeder 92 in this article refer to the different feeding points of the two, taking Figure 7 as an example, the different feeding directions of the first feeder 91 or the second feeder 92 are specifically reflected in that the connection line between the feeding point of the first feeder 91 (not shown in the figure, referring to the position where the first feeder 91 injects energy into the high and low frequency radiating units) and the center O1 of the second radiating electrode 50 intersects with the connection line between the feeding point of the second feeder 92 (not shown in the figure, referring to the position where the second feeder 92 injects energy into the high and low frequency radiating units) and the center O1 of the second radiating electrode 50. At this time, the antenna provided by the present disclosure can radiate electromagnetic waves of two polarizations, for example, it can radiate electromagnetic waves of ±45° polarization, or electromagnetic waves of 0° and 90°, etc. In this way, the spectrum utilization rate can be broadened by expanding the polarization dimension, and the anti-interference ability, stability and signal utilization rate of the antenna can be improved.

[0056] In some examples, the first slot opening 91 and the second slot opening 92 can be as Figure 7 shown, and the extending directions of the two are orthogonal to each other, forming a cross-shaped opening. Of course, the first slot opening 91 and the second slot opening 92 can also be of other shapes. Figure 8 is another exemplary shape of the slot opening, as Figure 8As shown, both the first slit opening 91 and the second slit opening 92 include a first sub-opening 911 / 921, a second sub-opening 912 / 922, and a third sub-opening 913 / 923. For the first slit opening 91, its first sub-opening 911 extends along a first direction, the second sub-opening 912 and the third sub-opening 913 extend along a second direction, and the second sub-opening 912 and the third sub-opening 913 are respectively connected to both ends of the first sub-opening 911. For the second slit opening 92, its first sub-opening 921 extends along a third direction, the second sub-opening 922 and the third sub-opening 923 extend along a fourth direction, and the second sub-opening 922 and the third sub-opening 923 are respectively connected to both ends of the first sub-opening 921. Specifically, the third direction is the same as the second direction, the fourth direction is the same as the first direction, and the first direction and the second direction are orthogonal. That is to say, the slit opening can be Figure 7 the cross-shaped opening shown, or can be Figure 8 the H-shaped opening shown. Both shapes of slit openings can enable the antenna to achieve dual polarization. However, due to the complex shape of the H-shaped opening, the adjustment parameters can be increased, thus providing various possibilities for antenna performance adjustment; but at the same time, the H-shaped opening has higher requirements for the manufacturing process, increasing the manufacturing difficulty. In practical applications, the shape of the slit opening can be flexibly set according to actual needs to balance the considerations of the manufacturing process and radiation performance.

[0057] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another feeding structure. As Figure 9 shown, this feeding structure 40 still includes a first feeder 41 and a second feeder 42. Different from the feeding structure provided above, Figure 9 in the feeding structure shown, the first feeder 41 includes a first sub-feeder 411 and a second sub-feeder 412, and the orthographic projections of both the first sub-feeder 411 and the second sub-feeder 412 on the first dielectric substrate 100 overlap with the orthographic projection of the first slit opening 91 on the first dielectric substrate 100; the second feeder 42 includes a third sub-feeder 421 and a fourth sub-feeder 422, and the orthographic projections of both the third sub-feeder 421 and the fourth sub-feeder 422 on the first dielectric substrate 100 overlap with the orthographic projection of the second slit opening 92 on the first dielectric substrate 100.

[0058] Those skilled in the art can understand that for Figure 7 and Figure 8 the feeding structure 40 shown, its feeding method can be called a two-point feeding method. Correspondingly, the feeding structure 40 is called a two-point feeding structure; for Figure 9The feeding structure 40 shown has a feeding method that can be called a four-point feeding method. Correspondingly, the feeding structure 40 is called a four-point feeding structure. Although the four-point feeding structure is more complex in structure and manufacturing process compared to the two-point feeding structure, the four-point feeding structure helps to improve the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna. To strengthen the reasoning, the inventor separately simulated the cross-polarization isolation parameters of antennas with two different feeding structures, and the simulation results are as shown in Figure 10 and Figure 11 . Among them, Figure 10 is the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna with a two-point feeding structure, and Figure 11 is the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna with a four-point feeding structure. It can be seen from Figure 10 that when a two-point feeding structure is adopted, the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna is -36 dB; and it can be seen from Figure 11 that when a four-point feeding structure is adopted, the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna can be improved from -36 dB to -45 dB. That is to say, by changing the feeding structure, the cross-polarization isolation of the antenna can be effectively improved, and the radiation performance of the antenna can be enhanced.

[0059] Next, several exemplary structures of the first radiation electrode will be introduced.

[0060] Figures 12 - 14 are three exemplary structures of the first radiation electrode respectively. Referring to Figures 12 - 14 , a first hollow portion 62 is provided on the first radiation electrode 60, and the first hollow portion 62 includes a plurality of sub-hollow portions. By providing a hollow portion on the first radiation electrode 60, on the one hand, the hollow portion on the radiation electrode forms electromagnetic coupling with the microstrip feeder to achieve non-contact feeding and avoid forming solder joints, thereby avoiding an increase in the PIM value; on the other hand, the current can be forced to flow around the slot line, increasing the effective current path length, thereby reducing the resonance frequency of the antenna, so that on the premise of maintaining the same electrical size, the physical size of the antenna can be reduced, which is helpful for the miniaturization of the antenna; on the other hand, the hollow portion can change the equivalent capacitance and inductance of the radiation electrode, adjust the input impedance, and by reasonably setting the position and shape of the hollow portion, the use of an additional impedance matching network can be avoided, saving manufacturing costs and reducing design complexity.

[0061] Figure 12 is the first optional shape of the sub-hollow portion. As shown in Figure 12 , the first hollow portion 62 includes four sub-hollow portions, namely a first sub-hollow portion 621, a second sub-hollow portion 622, a third sub-hollow portion 623, and a fourth sub-hollow portion 624 arranged in clockwise order. Any two of the plurality of sub-hollow portions are rotationally symmetric about a rotation center O2, and the rotation center O2 coincides with the center of the first radiation electrode 60. Taking Figure 12For example, the first sub-hollow portion 621 is rotationally symmetric about the rotation center O2 by 90°, 180°, and 270° with respect to the second sub-hollow portion 622, the third sub-hollow portion 623, and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, respectively. For any one of the sub-hollow portions (taking the second sub-hollow portion 622 as an example), it includes a first opening 622a extending in the fifth direction, a second opening 622b extending in the sixth direction, and a third opening 622c. Among them, the first ends of the second opening 622b and the third opening 622c are respectively connected to both ends of the first opening 622a, forming a U-shaped pattern.

[0062] Figure 13 is the second optional shape of the sub-hollow portion. As Figure 13 shown, the first hollow portion 62 includes four sub-hollow portions, namely the first sub-hollow portion 621, the second sub-hollow portion 622, the third sub-hollow portion 623, and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, which are arranged in clockwise order. Any two of the multiple sub-hollow portions are rotationally symmetric about the rotation center O2, and this rotation center O2 coincides with the center of the first radiation electrode 60. Taking Figure 13 as an example, the first sub-hollow portion 621 is rotationally symmetric about the rotation center O2 by 90°, 180°, and 270° with respect to the second sub-hollow portion 622, the third sub-hollow portion 623, and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, respectively. For any one of the sub-hollow portions (taking the second sub-hollow portion 622 as an example), it includes a first opening 622a extending in the fifth direction and a second opening 622b extending in the sixth direction. Among them, the first end of the second opening 622b is connected to the middle of the first opening 622a, forming a T-shaped pattern.

[0063] Figure 14 is the third optional shape of the sub-hollow portion. As Figure 14 shown, the first hollow portion 62 includes four sub-hollow portions, namely the first sub-hollow portion 621, the second sub-hollow portion 622, the third sub-hollow portion 623, and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, which are arranged in clockwise order. Among them, any one of the sub-hollow portions and the adjacent sub-hollow portion are symmetric about the axis of symmetry of the first radiation electrode 60. Taking Figure 14 as an example, the first sub-hollow portion 621 is symmetric about the axis of symmetry L1 and the axis of symmetry L2 with respect to the second sub-hollow portion 622 and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, respectively. The third sub-hollow portion 623 is symmetric about the axis of symmetry L2 and the axis of symmetry L1 with respect to the second sub-hollow portion 622 and the fourth sub-hollow portion 624, respectively. For any one of the sub-hollow portions (taking the second sub-hollow portion 622 as an example), it includes a first opening 622a extending in the fifth direction and a second opening 622b extending in the sixth direction. Among them, the first end of the second opening 622b is connected to the first end of the first opening 622a, forming an L-shaped pattern.

[0064] It should be noted that Figures 12 - 14These are only three optional examples of the first hollow portion. In actual implementation, the shape of the first hollow portion can be flexibly designed according to the manufacturing process and antenna performance, and the present disclosure places no restrictions thereon.

[0065] Continuing to refer to Figure 4 , in some optional embodiments, the antenna provided by the present disclosure further includes a director structure 70 disposed on a side of the first radiating electrode 60 facing away from the first dielectric substrate 100; referring to Figure 3 , Figure 5 and Figure 6 , there is an overlap between the orthographic projections of the director structure 70, the first radiating electrode 60, and the second radiating electrode 50 on the first dielectric substrate 100.

[0066] In the above embodiments, by disposing the director structure 70 on a side of the first radiating electrode 60 facing away from the first dielectric substrate 100, and there is an overlap between the orthographic projections of the director structure 70, the first radiating electrode 60, and the second radiating electrode 50 on the first dielectric substrate 100. On the one hand, the director structure 70 can be used as a parasitic element to interact with the radiating electrode through electromagnetic coupling, adjust the phase distribution of the radiation field, concentrate the energy in a specific direction, and improve the directivity and gain of the antenna; on the other hand, by adjusting the position and size of the director structure 70, the pointing angle of the main beam can be changed to achieve beam deflection; on the further hand, the director structure 70 can increase the front-to-back ratio of the antenna by suppressing the backward radiation and reduce the interference from the rear.

[0067] Next, several optional examples of the director structure will be introduced.

[0068] Figure 15 is the first optional example of the director structure. As Figure 15 shown, the director structure 70 includes a main body portion 71 and four branch portions connected to the main body portion 71. In clockwise order, they are the first branch portion 721, the second branch portion 722, the third branch portion 723, and the fourth branch portion 724; among them, any one branch portion is rotationally symmetric about the center of the main body portion 71 with respect to the other three branch portions. Taking Figure 15 as an example, the first branch portion 721 is rotationally symmetric about the center of the main body portion 71 by 90°, 180°, and 270° with respect to the second branch portion 722, the third branch portion 723, and the fourth branch portion 724, respectively.

[0069] Figure 16 is the second optional example of the director structure. As Figure 16 shown, the director structure 70 includes a main body portion 71 and four branch portions connected to the main body portion 71. In clockwise order, they are the first branch portion 721, the second branch portion 722, the third branch portion 723, and the fourth branch portion 724; among them, any one branch portion is rotationally symmetric about the center of the main body portion 71 with respect to the other three branch portions. TakingFigure 16 For example, the first branch 721 is symmetric with the second branch 722, the third branch 723, and the fourth branch 724 about the center of the main body 71 by 90°, 180°, and 270° respectively.

[0070] As an optional embodiment, the first dielectric substrate 100, the second dielectric substrate 200, and the third dielectric substrate 300 of the antenna provided by the present disclosure can all adopt the following materials: epoxy glass fiber FR4, Rogers series, ceramics (Al 2 O 3 , LTCC, etc.), polytetrafluoroethylene PTEE, polyimide PI, and polycarbonate, etc. Any one of the first radiation electrode 60, the second radiation electrode 50, the feeding structure 40, and the reference electrode 80 of the antenna provided by the present disclosure can adopt the following materials: conductive materials such as copper Cu, aluminum Al, silver Ag, gold Au, and conductive ink. Preferably, in the antenna provided by the present disclosure, the first dielectric substrate 100, the second dielectric substrate 200, and the third dielectric substrate 300 can adopt transparent polycarbonate material; correspondingly, the first radiation electrode 60, the feeding structure 40, the second radiation electrode 50, and the reference electrode 80 can adopt a conductive grid, such as a meshed metal structure. In this way, the transparency of the antenna can be improved and the concealment of the antenna can be enhanced. Of course, the materials of the dielectric substrate and the radiation electrode can also be flexibly selected according to the processing cost, the dielectric transmission loss, and the characteristics such as high temperature resistance and corrosion resistance. The present disclosure does not limit this.

[0071] To make a simple summary, the above embodiments of the present disclosure provide a variety of optional feeding structures, a variety of optional slit openings, a variety of optional first hollow portions, and a variety of director structures. In actual implementation, those skilled in the art can flexibly select any one example from the various examples of each component according to actual needs to form an antenna. For example, for the Figures 3 - 6 antenna shown, the feeding structure 40 therein is a four-point feeding structure, the slit opening of the second radiation electrode 50 is a cross-shaped opening, each sub-hollow portion of the second radiation electrode 50 is in a U-shaped pattern, and the director structure 70 adopts the Figure 15 structure shown. Of course, it is not limited to this. Figure 17 and Figure 18 are respectively schematic diagrams of the three-dimensional structures of two other antennas. Figure 17 For the antenna shown, its feeding structure 40 adopts a two-point feeding structure, the slit opening 90 of the second radiation electrode 50 is an H-shaped slit, the sub-hollow portion of the first radiation electrode 60 is in a U-shaped pattern, and the director structure 70 adopts the Figure 15 structure shown; while Figure 18The antenna shown has a feeding structure 40 that adopts a two-point feeding structure, the slit opening 90 of the second radiation electrode 50 is an H-shaped slit, the sub-hollowed part of the first radiation electrode 60 has an L-shaped pattern, and the director structure 70 adopts Figure 16 the structure shown. And so on, other exemplary structures of the antenna are not listed one by one here.

[0072] In addition, for the antenna shown in the present disclosure Figure 3 the inventor simulated its radiation performance, and the simulation results are as Figures 19 - 20 shown. Among them, Figure 19 is Figure 3 the simulation curve of the reflection coefficient S11 of the antenna shown; Figure 20 in (a) is Figure 3 the two-dimensional radiation pattern of the antenna shown, Figure 20 in (b) is Figure 3 the three-dimensional radiation pattern of the antenna shown. As can be seen from Figure 19 , within the operating frequency band of 1.7 GHz - 2.7 GHz of the antenna, its reflection coefficient S11 is less than or equal to -10 dB in the frequency band of 1.85 GHz - 2.5 GHz. Therefore, its bandwidth is about 700 MHz, which is suitable for broadband or multi-mode communication. As can be seen from Figure 20 in (a) and (b), the beam width of the antenna provided by the present disclosure is about ±30°, the maximum gain is 8.1 dB, and the backward (θ = 180°) gain is close to -38.9 dB. Therefore, it has a high front-to-back ratio (about -47 dB), far exceeding the requirements of base station antennas and having high anti-interference ability; and from the fact that the backward gain is close to -38.9 dB, it can be seen that the antenna has high side lobe suppression, so it can reduce multipath interference and is suitable for dense multi-user environments.

[0073] Based on the same inventive concept, in a second aspect, the present disclosure provides an antenna array, which includes a carrier substrate and a plurality of antennas arranged on the carrier substrate. The antennas are as described in any one of the embodiments of the first aspect above, and the plurality of antennas are arranged in an array on the carrier substrate.

[0074] Based on the same inventive concept, in a third aspect, the present disclosure further provides a communication device, which includes the antenna array provided in the second aspect.

[0075] In addition, the communication device provided by the present disclosure further includes a transceiver unit, a radio frequency transceiver, a signal amplifier, a power amplifier, and a filtering unit. The antenna in the communication device can be used as a transmitting antenna or a receiving antenna. Among them, the transceiver unit may include a baseband and a receiving end. The baseband provides signals of at least one frequency band, such as providing 2G signals, 3G signals, 4G signals, 5G signals, etc., and transmits the signals of at least one frequency band to the radio frequency transceiver. After the antenna in the communication device receives a signal, it can be transmitted to the receiving end in the transceiver unit after being processed by the filtering unit, the power amplifier, the signal amplifier, and the radio frequency transceiver. The receiving end can be, for example, a smart gateway, etc.

[0076] Further, the radio frequency transceiver is connected to the transceiver unit and is used to modulate the signal transmitted by the transceiver unit or to demodulate the signal received by the antenna and then transmit it to the transceiver unit. Specifically, the radio frequency transceiver may include a transmitting circuit, a receiving circuit, a modulation circuit, and a demodulation circuit. After the transmitting circuit receives various types of signals provided by the baseband, the modulation circuit can modulate the various types of signals provided by the baseband and then transmit them to the antenna. The antenna receives the signal and transmits it to the receiving circuit of the radio frequency transceiver. The receiving circuit transmits the signal to the demodulation circuit, and the demodulation circuit demodulates the signal and then transmits it to the receiving end.

[0077] Further, the radio frequency transceiver is connected to the signal amplifier and the power amplifier. The signal amplifier and the power amplifier are then connected to the filtering unit, and the filtering unit is connected to at least one antenna. During the process of the communication device transmitting a signal, the signal amplifier is used to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal output by the radio frequency transceiver and then transmit it to the filtering unit; the power amplifier is used to amplify the power of the signal output by the radio frequency transceiver and then transmit it to the filtering unit; the filtering unit may specifically include a duplexer and a filtering circuit. The filtering unit combines the signals output by the signal amplifier and the power amplifier and filters out the clutter and then transmits them to the antenna, and the antenna radiates the signal. During the process of the communication device receiving a signal, after the antenna receives the signal, it transmits it to the filtering unit. The filtering unit filters out the clutter of the signal received by the antenna and then transmits it to the signal amplifier and the power amplifier. The signal amplifier amplifies the signal received by the antenna to increase the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal; the power amplifier amplifies the power of the signal received by the antenna. The signal received by the antenna is transmitted to the radio frequency transceiver after being processed by the power amplifier and the signal amplifier, and then the radio frequency transceiver transmits it to the transceiver unit.

[0078] In some examples, the signal amplifier may include various types of signal amplifiers, such as a low-noise amplifier, which is not limited herein.

[0079] In some examples, the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure further includes a power management unit. The power management unit is connected to the power amplifier and provides the voltage for amplifying the signal to the power amplifier.

[0080] It is understood that the above embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments adopted for explaining the principles of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For those of ordinary skill in the art, various modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the spirit and essence of the present invention, and these modifications and improvements are also regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An antenna, characterized in that: It comprises a first dielectric substrate, a second dielectric substrate and a third dielectric substrate which are stacked in sequence; The third dielectric substrate has a first surface and a second surface, the second surface being closer to the second dielectric substrate; The antenna also includes: A first radiation electrode and a second radiation electrode are respectively arranged on the first surface side and the second surface side; the first radiation electrode and the second radiation electrode radiate electromagnetic waves of different frequencies; a feeding structure, arranged on a side of the second dielectric substrate away from the third dielectric substrate; the feeding structure is electrically connected to the second radiation electrode; the second radiation electrode has a slit opening penetrating along the thickness direction thereof, and the feeding structure is electrically connected to the first radiation electrode through the slit opening; A reference electrode is disposed on a side of the first dielectric substrate facing away from the second dielectric substrate; Any one of the first radiation electrode, the second radiation electrode and the feeding structure overlaps with the orthographic projection of the reference electrode on the first dielectric substrate.

2. The antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that The feeding structure comprises a first feeder and a second feeder, and the first feeder and the second feeder have different feeding directions; The slit opening comprises a first slit opening and a second slit opening; The first feed line is coupled to the second radiation electrode and coupled to the first radiation electrode through the first slit opening; the second feed line is coupled to the second radiation electrode and coupled to the first radiation electrode through the second slit opening.

3. The antenna according to claim 2, characterized in that: The extending directions of the first slit opening and the second slit opening are orthogonal to each other.

4. The antenna according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first slit opening and the second slit opening each include a first sub-opening, a second sub-opening and a third sub-opening; For the first slit opening, its first sub-opening extends along the first direction, the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening extend along the second direction, and the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening are respectively connected to two ends of the first sub-opening; For the second slit opening, its first sub-opening extends along the third direction, the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening extend along the fourth direction, and the second sub-opening and the third sub-opening are respectively connected to two ends of the first sub-opening; The first direction and the third direction are orthogonal.

5. The antenna according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first feeder includes a first sub-feeder and a second sub-feeder, and the second feeder includes a third sub-feeder and a fourth sub-feeder; The orthographic projections of the first sub-feeder and the second sub-feeder on the first dielectric substrate overlap with the orthographic projection of the first slit opening on the first dielectric substrate; The orthographic projections of the third sub-feeder and the fourth sub-feeder on the first dielectric substrate overlap with the orthographic projection of the second slit opening on the first dielectric substrate.

6. The antenna according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The first radiation electrode has a first hollow portion penetrating along a thickness direction thereof.

7. The antenna according to claim 6, characterized in that The first hollow portion includes a plurality of sub-hollow portions arranged clockwise; any two of the plurality of sub-hollow portions are rotationally symmetric.

8. The antenna according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: It also includes a guiding structure arranged on a side of the first radiation electrode away from the first dielectric substrate; There is overlap between the orthographic projections of the directing structure, the first radiation electrode, and the second radiation electrode on the first dielectric substrate.

9. The antenna according to claim 8, characterized in that The guiding structure includes a main body and four branch parts connected to the main body; Any one of the branch portions is rotationally symmetrical with the other three branch portions about the center of the main body portion.

10. The antenna according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The second dielectric substrate and the third dielectric substrate are made of polycarbonate.

11. The antenna according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: Any one of the first radiation electrode, the second radiation electrode, the feeding structure, and the reference electrode adopts a conductive mesh.

12. An antenna array, comprising a carrier substrate and a plurality of antennas according to any one of claims 1 to 11; The plurality of antenna arrays are arranged on the carrier substrate.

13. A communication device comprising the antenna array according to claim 12.

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